Intermediate bulk containers have been developed for shipping liquid which are the general shape of a rectangle or a standard pallet. Many of these containers are adapted to utilize a disposable liner which is an inner plastic bag that contains the shipped material while the bag is confined within the container, the bags are generally disposed after use. Some of these containers are collapsible, so that after the shipment has been received and the contents emptied from the disposable liner, the container is disassembled and secured for shipment back to the supplier. These collapsible containers are provided with either a built in pallet, or are adaptable for use on an industry standard pallet. When shipping liquid, a problem encountered with using a standard pallet and many containers with built in pallets, a bottom discharge container cannot be used. Furthermore using a standard pallet with a side discharge container does not allow the end user to quickly and efficiently empty a liquid filled liner. The use of collapsible containers that include a built in pallet with a bottom discharge port are extremely expensive and additionally when the pallet portion of these containers is damaged the entire container must be discarded. The present invention overcomes these problems by providing a collapsible shipping container that is adaptable for use on any standard industry pallet and which provides a bottom discharge port so that the container may be used for shipping liquids.
The present device provides a collapsible lightweight intermediate bulk liquid shipping container which is constructed of four wall frame members with wall panels which wall frame members are assembled upon a standard size pallet, while a rigid formed foam block floor is inserted into the assembled container forming a floor in the container, a passageway is provided through the foam block floor and extends to an exterior side of one of the wall frame members, an inner liner with a 90.degree. elbow connected to the liner discharge port is inserted into the container while the elbow is inserted through the passage way and out to the exterior side of a wall frame member. The container is lighter than most prior devices and constructed of durable reusable materials allowing the container to be reused and shipped in a collapsible state. Furthermore, the wall panels are constructed of durable corrugated plastic and form a continuous plastic interior of the assembled container thereby eliminating exposure of any metal parts of the container from being exposed to the possibly corrosive chemicals shipped and reducing the possibility of puncturing of the plastic liner. Additionally, the wall frame members are quickly and easily assembled with numerous rounded upturned post and inverted V notched tabs which reduces the number of sharp edges exposed on the exterior of the assembled container thereby reducing injuries and snagging and tearing of the plastic liners.